Electronic device including wireless communication system, for processing transmission signal or reception signal

ABSTRACT

An electronic device is disclosed. The electronic device may include an antenna for transmitting and receiving a signal in an RF frequency band, and an RF circuit for processing the signal in the RF frequency band. The RF circuit may include an Rx path for transferring a first signal received through the antenna, a Tx path for transferring a second signal output from an amplifier to the antenna, and a coupler for transferring at least a part of the second signal obtained in the Tx path to the Rx path. In addition, various embodiments understood from the specification are possible.

PRIORITY

This application is a National Phase Entry of PCT InternationalApplication No. PCT/KR2018/010341 which was filed on Sep. 5, 2018, andclaims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2017-0113381, whichwas filed on Sep. 5, 2017, the content of each of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a technique for processing atransmit (Tx) signal or a receive (Rx) signal in a wirelesscommunication system.

BACKGROUND ART

Wireless communication systems have evolved to support higher data ratesto meet increasing traffic demands for wireless data. Recently, researchis being conducted on 5G (fifth generation) communication technologywhich is the next generation communication technology of 4G (fourthgeneration) communication technology. The 5G communication technologyaims to achieve accommodation of 1000 times of explosive data trafficcompared to long term evolution (LTE) that is a kind of 4G communicationtechnology, a dramatic increase in data rate per user with an averagedata rate of 1 Gbps, a large increase in the number of connectedelectronic devices, low end-to-end latency and high energy efficiency,as technical goals. In the 5G network, it is possible to transmit andreceive frequencies in the higher mmWave band than that of the 4Gnetworks. For example, in the 5G network, it is possible to transmit andreceive a signal having a high frequency, such as 28 GHz, in a widefrequency band.

As such, a new structured communication circuit may be required forefficient communication to transmit and receive signals using highfrequencies in a wide band. For example, a design of an RF circuithaving a structure different from that of a conventional radio frequency(RF) circuit for 3G and 4G network communication may be required.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

The filter of the conventional RF circuit is designed to be suitable fora signal of a relatively low and narrow band frequency, for example,signals of frequencies of a band of 1 to 2 GHz, and therefore, is notsuitable to be applied to the RF circuit for transmitting and receivinga high frequency wideband signal.

Conventional wireless communication circuits, such as RF circuits fortransmitting and receiving signals over the 5G network, may be designednot to include couplers, making power control and calibration difficult.

Various embodiments disclosed in the disclosure provide an electronicdevice for efficiently transmitting or receiving a high frequencywideband signal.

Technical Solution

According to an embodiment disclosed herein, an electronic device mayinclude an radio frequency (RF) circuit that process a signal in anradio frequency (RF) frequency band, and the RF circuit may include a Rxpath for transferring a first signal received through the antenna, a Txpath for transferring a second signal output from an amplifier to theantenna, and a coupler for transferring at least a part of the secondsignal obtained in the Tx path to the Rx path.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment disclosed herein, an RF circuitmay include a Rx path including a low noise amplifier and a downconverter that converts a Rx signal into an intermediate frequency (IF)signal based on the Rx signal and a first local oscillator (LO) signal,a Tx path including an up converter that converts a Tx signal into asignal in an mmWave band based on a second oscillator (LO) signal andthe Tx signal, and a coupling path for transferring at least a part ofthe Tx signal to the Rx path.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment disclosed herein, an electronicdevice may include an RF circuit that processes a signal in the RFfrequency band, wherein the RF circuit may include a Rx path including alow noise amplifier and a down converter that converts a Rx signal intoan intermediate frequency (IF) signal based on the Rx signal and a firstlocal oscillator (LO) signal, a Tx path including an up converter thatconverts a Tx signal into a signal in an mmWave band based on a secondoscillator (LO) signal and the Tx signal, and a coupling path fortransferring at least a part of the Tx signal to the Rx path.

Advantageous Effects

According to the embodiments disclosed herein, the electronic device mayeffectively transmit or receive a high frequency wideband signal.

According to the embodiments disclosed herein, the electronic device mayeffectively suppress an image signal.

According to the embodiments disclosed herein, the electronic device mayeffectively control and calibrate the power of an RF signal.

In addition, various effects may be provided that are directly orindirectly understood through the disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a configuration of an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 2 according to an embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 6 according to an embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 9 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 8 according to an embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

FIG. 12 is a detailed structural diagram of an RF module according to anembodiment.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an electronic device in a networkenvironment according to various embodiments.

In the description of the drawings, the same or similar referencenumerals may be used for the same or similar components.

MODE FOR INVENTION

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the disclosure may be described withreference to accompanying drawings. Accordingly, those of ordinary skillin the art will recognize that modification, equivalent, and/oralternative on the various embodiments described herein can be variouslymade without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure. Withregard to description of drawings, similar components may be marked bysimilar reference numerals.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a configuration of an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, an electronic device 100may include a communication circuit 101 capable of transmitting orreceiving a signal to or from an external device through a wirelessnetwork.

According to an embodiment, the communication circuit 101 may transmitand receive a high frequency wideband signal. For example, thecommunication circuit 101 may transmit and receive a signal having ahigher frequency than that of the 4G network. The communication circuit101 may transmit and receive a signal in an mmWave band, for example, a5G signal. The 5G signal may be, for example, a signal in a 28 GHz band.

According to an embodiment, the communication circuit 101 may include acellular modem 110, an IF circuit 120, and an RF module 130. Inaddition, the structure of the communication circuit 101 may bevariously modified according to various embodiments described herein.

According to an embodiment, the cellular modem 110 may support signalsin the mmWave band. For example, the cellular modem 110 may support nextgeneration communications including 5G communication. The cellular modem110 may be referred to as a 5G modem. The cellular modem 110 may includea communication processor (CP).

According to an embodiment, the IF circuit 120 may transmit a signalreceived through an antenna or an antenna module 134 (hereinafter,referred to as an antenna module) to the cellular modem 110 or transmita signal obtained from the cellular modem 110 to the antenna module. Forexample, the IF circuit 120 may be disposed between the cellular modem110 and the RF module 130. The IF circuit 120 may process an IF signal.The IF circuit 120 may be referred to as an IF integrated circuit(IFIC). The IF signal may be, for example, a signal in a 7-11 GHz band.

According to an embodiment, the IF circuit 120 may transmit or receive asignal to and from the RF module 130 through a cable 140. The cable 140may be, for example, a coaxial cable or an RF flexible printed circuitboard (FPCB).

According to an embodiment, the RF module 130 may include an RF circuit132 and/or the antenna module 134. The RF module 130 may be, forexample, an integrated chip including the RF circuit 132 and the antennamodule 134. The RF module 130 may process RF signals and transmit orreceive signals in the RF band to or from an external device (e.g., abase station). For example, the RF module 130 may transmit or receive asignal in the mmWave band to or from an external device.

According to an embodiment, the RF circuit 132 may convert a signalbetween the RF band and the IF band. The RF circuit 132 may convert anIF signal obtained through the IF circuit 120 into an RF signal, orconvert an RF signal obtained through the antenna module 134 into an IFsignal. According to an embodiment, the RF signal may be a signal in themmWave band. The RF circuit 132 may be referred to as an mmWaveintegrated circuit (mmW IC), an RF front end (RFFE), or the like.

According to an embodiment, the antenna module 134 may transmit orreceive a high frequency wideband signal. The antenna module 134 may bean array antenna. For example, the antenna module 134 may be a 5Gantenna.

As shown in FIG. 1, the communication circuit 101 may support aheterodyne scheme. Under a heterodyne system, an image signal may begenerated, and suppression of the image signal may be important toimprove system performance.

According to an embodiment, an image signal may be generated when areceive (Rx) signal is analyzed. The image signal may be generated by,for example, the 2nd harmonic of a local oscillator (LO) signal and theRF signal. Interference between signals may occur in the communicationcircuit 101, and degradation of sensitivity, transmission performance,and the like may be caused. The image signal may be located close to thefrequency of the intermediate frequency (IF) signal and may have a greatinfluence, so the characteristics of the image signal may be important.For example, the image signal may affect the error vector magnitude(EVM), sensitivity performance, and the like of a signal.

Therefore, it is possible to effectively improve the performance of thecommunication circuit 101 in the case of suppressing the image signalgenerated by the RF signal of RF and EVM and the 2nd harmonic of the LOsignal. An RF front end (RFFE) supporting transmission and reception ofhigh frequency wideband signals, for example, 5G signals, may include afilter capable of suppressing an image signal therein. Depending on theperformance of the filter, image signal suppression, low losscharacteristics of the RF and IF signals may vary.

Conventional filters of 1 to 2 GHz have a loss of about 1.5 decibels(dB) and attenuation performance of 50 dB or more due to the developmentof design techniques such as bulk acoustic wave (BAW). In the band above3 GHz, because the filter is implemented by LC, it may be difficult tosecure high attenuation and low loss. A conventional filter structureneeds to attenuate various frequency bands at the same time while beingapplied to a high band (e.g., 11 GHz), and therefore, there may be a lotof loss, and there may be a limit to be applied to the widebandfrequency.

The mmWave frequency band may vary depending on use entities. Forexample, Europe may use a frequency band of 24 GHz to 27 GHz, Japan mayuse a frequency band of 24 GHz to 31 GHz, and Korea may use a frequencyband of 26 GHz to 29 GHz. According to one embodiment, it may bedifficult to simultaneously handle various bands when a conventionalfilter is used. For example, in a system using 24 GHz for RF, 17 GHz forLO, and 7 GHz for IF, the image signal may be of 10 GHz. In a systemusing 26 GHz for RF, 17 GHz for LO, and 9 GHz for IF, the image signalmay be a signal of 8 GHz. According to various embodiments disclosedherein, the electronic device may process various high frequencywideband signals.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

According to an embodiment, an RF circuit 200 (e.g., the RF circuit 132of FIG. 1) may input LO+ and LO− signals to a mixer 223 and include abalance to unbalance transformer (balun) 224 that processes an outputimage signal to reduce the influence of the image signal. For example,the RF circuit 200 may include power amplifiers 211 and 221, a powerdivider 212, a power combiner 222, mixers 213 and 223, and the balun224. In addition, the configuration of the RF circuit 200 may bevariously modified. For example, the RF circuit 200 may include a switch214.

According to an embodiment, the configurations of the RF circuit 200 mayconstitute an Rx path or a Tx path. The Rx path may be a path throughwhich an Rx signal is transmitted. The Rx path may transfer the Rxsignal obtained through an antenna module (e.g., the antenna module 134of FIG. 1) to the IF circuit 120. The Rx path may convert the RF signalinto an IF signal. The signal obtained through the antenna module may bea signal in an RF band. According to an embodiment, the signal obtainedthrough the antenna module may be a signal in an mmWave band.

According to an embodiment, the Tx path may be a path through which a Txsignal is transmitted. For example, the Tx path may transmit a signalobtained through an IF circuit to the antenna module. The Tx path mayconvert an IF signal into an RF signal.

According to an embodiment, the Rx path may include a low noiseamplifier (s) (LNA) 221, the power combiner 222, the mixer 223, and thebalun 224. In addition, the configuration of the Rx path may bevariously modified.

According to an embodiment, the low noise amplifier (s) 221 may amplifya signal obtained from the antenna module. The low noise amplifier (s)221 may be located close to the antenna module to reduce signalattenuation in lines. According to an embodiment, the low noiseamplifier (s) 221 may be disposed between the power combiner 222 and theantenna module. The low noise amplifier (s) 221 may be disposed for eachantenna module. For example, the antenna module may be configured witharray antennas. The signals respectively obtained by the array antennasmay be input to different low noise amplifiers 221-1 and 221-2.

According to an embodiment, the power combiner 222 may output aplurality of input signals through a single output terminal. Accordingto an embodiment, the Rx signals output from the low noise amplifier (s)221 may be combined in the power combiner 222. The power combiner 222may be referred to as a power combiner.

According to an embodiment, the mixer 223 may convert an Rx signal froma signal in an RF band to an IF signal. The mixer 223 may down-convert afrequency of the Rx signal and may be referred to as a down converter.According to one embodiment, the mixer 223 may be disposed between thepower combiner 222 and the balun 224. The Rx signal may be, for example,a signal combined at the power combiner 222.

According to an embodiment, the mixer 223 may combine an LO signal andan RF signal to generate an IF signal. In this case, an image signal maybe generated. According to an embodiment, the mixer 223 may receive theLO+ and LO− signals to suppress the image signal. In the mixer 223,signals including IF+ and IF− signals may be generated.

According to one embodiment, the balun 224 may be a device that performsconversion between a balanced signal and an unbalanced signal. The balun224 may be a passive element. According to an embodiment, the balun 224may process signals output from the mixer 223. In the balun 224, theoutput signals of the mixer 223 may be synthesized, and the image signalmay be suppressed.

Assuming that an Rx signal according to an embodiment is expressed as inEquation 1, the signals output by the mixer 223 may be expressed as inEquation 2. Using the balun 224, the image signal of the Rx signal maybe suppressed as in Equations 1 and 3 below.RF=a0*sin(w1*t)+a1*sin(2w1*t)+ . . .  [Equation 1]L0+=a0*sin(w2*t)+a1*sin(2w2*t)+ . . . ,L0−=sin(w2*t)+a1*sin(2w2*t)+ . . . ,IF+=b0*sin((w1−w2)*t)+b1*sin((2w2−w1)*t)+ . . . ,IF−=−b0*sin((w1−w2)*t)+b1*sin((2w2−w1)*t)+ . . . ,  [Equation 2]IF++IF−=c0*sin((w1−w2)t)+ . . .  [Equation 3]

According to an embodiment, an LO signal may be generated in a varietyways. For example, the LO signal may be generated using a phase lockedloop (PLL) or may be generated using a phase shifter (PS). In this case,it is possible to effectively suppress an image signal by using a phaseshifting technique for phase dis-matching due to wafer variation in themmWave band.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include the mixer 213, thepower divider 212, and the power amplifier (s) 211.

According to one embodiment, the mixer 213 may up-convert a frequencyband. The mixer 213 may convert a Tx signal from an IF signal to an RFsignal. The mixer 213 may be referred to as an up converter. Accordingto one embodiment, a Tx signal and an LO signal are input to the mixer213, and the Tx signal may be converted into an RF signal.

According to one embodiment, the power divider 212 may distribute Txpower to a plurality of antennas or antenna elements at a constantratio. According to one embodiment, the power divider 212 may distributethe Tx power of the Tx signal output from the mixer 213 to the pluralityof antennas. According to one embodiment, the plurality of antennas orantenna elements may constitute an antenna module (e.g., the antennamodule 134 of FIG. 1).

According to one embodiment, the power amplifier (s) 211 may amplify theTx power. The power amplifier (s) 211 may amplify the power distributedby the power divider 212. The power amplifier (s) 211 may amplify powerfor a connected antenna among the plurality of antennas. The poweramplifier (s) 211 may be electrically connected to a plurality ofantennas constituting an antenna array. For example, some amplifier (s)211-1 of the power amplifier (s) 211 may be connected to a specificantenna among antennas constituting the antenna array, and some otheramplifier (s) 211-2 may be electrically connected to an antennadifferent from the specific antenna. According to one embodiment, thepower amplifier (s) 211 may be disposed between the antenna and thepower divider 212.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 200 may support signaltransmission/reception of a time division duplex (TDD) scheme. The RFcircuit 200 may include the switch 214.

According to one embodiment, the switch 214 may select a Tx path or a Rxpath. The switch 214 may be, for example, a single pole double throw(SPDT). The switch 214 may include a first terminal connected to a Txpath, a second terminal connected to a Rx path, and a third terminal fortransmitting a signal to the first terminal or receiving a signal fromthe second terminal. According to one embodiment, the first terminal maybe electrically connected to the mixer 213. The second terminal may beelectrically connected to the balun 224.

According to one embodiment, the switch 214 may be controlled by aprocessor. The processor may be a CP or an application processor (AP).When the switch 214 is connected to the Rx path, the output signal ofthe balun 224 may be transmitted in the direction of the IF circuit.When the switch 214 is connected to the Tx path, the IF signal outputfrom the IF circuit may be transmitted in the direction of the mixer213.

According to one embodiment, the switch 214 may operate in a timedivision duplex (TDD) scheme. The switch 214 may be connected to the Txpath or the Rx path over time. According to one embodiment, theprocessor may allow the switch 214 to connect the Tx path or the Rx pathover time.

Although the switch 214 is illustrated for selection of a path in FIG. 2and the following embodiments, the switch 214 may be a selection circuitthat provides a selection. For example, the selection circuit may be aswitch or a divider.

According to one embodiment, a signal may be input/output to/from the RFcircuit 200 through one external port. For example, a Tx/Rx signal(e.g., IF signal), a signal for frequency comparison (hereinafterreferred to as a VCO signal) of a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO)and a control signal may be input and output through the one port.According to one embodiment, a combination of a diplexer and a duplexeror a triplexer may be applied to an input terminal of a Tx signal in theRF circuit 200. In such a structure, signals may be input and output toand from the RF circuit 200 through one port.

FIG. 2 illustrates a case where a combination of a diplexer 215 and aduplexer 216 is applied to the input terminal of the RF circuit 200. Forexample, when a Tx/Rx signal, a VCO signal, and a control signal areinput through one port of the RF circuit 200, the diplexer 215 may splitthe signals to different paths according to frequencies. For example,the diplexer 215 may band-separate signals of different frequencies,such as a high band and a low band. According to one embodiment, thediplexer 215 may split the input signals into a first path and a secondpath according to frequencies. The first path may be used to transmitthe Tx signal (or IF signal), and the second path may be used totransmit the VCO signal and the control signal.

According to one embodiment, the duplexer 216 may separate the VCO andthe control signal.

According to one embodiment, the diplexer 215 may transmit a Tx signalto the switch 214 or may obtain an Rx signal output from the switch 214.According to one embodiment, the diplexer 215 may be electricallyconnected to the switch 214. The diplexer 215 may be electricallyconnected to a third terminal of the switch 214.

Using the combination of the duplexer 216 and the diplexer 215 accordingto the embodiment, the attenuation characteristics may be consideredrelatively less, which may have a gain in terms of loss when viewedbased on a path which the Tx signal passes through. For example, theloss gain may increase in a signal of a band of 6 to 11 GHz.

Using the VCO signal according to one embodiment, a component, such asan external crystal oscillator (XO), may be used in common for each RFmodule (e.g., the mmWave module 130). In this case, it is possible tosecure frequency accuracy and unity for each module when simultaneouslyoperating for each module such that only one XO may be used.

According to one embodiment, the control signal may be a signal forcontrolling the RF circuit 200 which is received from a processor (e.g.,an AP or a CP). For example, the control signal may control the switch214.

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 3, an RF circuit 201 (e.g., the RF circuit 132 ofFIG. 1) may include a triplexer 217 at an input terminal. Someconfigurations of the RF circuit 201 may be the same as or similar tothe RF circuit 200. For example, the amplifier (s) 211 and 221, thepower divider 212, the power combiner 222, the mixer 213, the mixer 223,the switch 214, and the balun 224 may be respectively the same as orsimilar to the configurations of FIG. 2.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 201 may obtain or transmitvarious signals to an external device through one external port usingthe triplexer 217. For example, the triplexer 217 may transmit a VCOsignal, a control signal, and a Tx/Rx signal. For example, the triplexer217 may transmit an Rx signal to an IF circuit (e.g., the IF circuit 120of FIG. 1) through one port. The triplexer 217 may be electricallyconnected to the switch 214.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 2 according to an embodiment.

Although the operation of the RF circuit 200 of FIG. 2 is illustrated inFIG. 4, the following embodiments may be applied to the RF circuit 201of FIG. 3.

According to one embodiment, when the switch 214 is connected to a Txpath, a Tx signal output through the diplexer 215 may be transferred tothe Tx path. The Tx signal may be transferred to an antenna module(e.g., the antenna module 134 of FIG. 1) through the mixer 213, thepower divider 212, and the power amplifiers 211.

According to one embodiment, when the switch 214 is connected to a Rxpath, an Rx signal obtained through the antenna module may betransferred to the diplexer 215 through the switch 214. The Rx signalobtained by the diplexer 215 may be transferred to an IF circuit (e.g.,the IF circuit 120 of FIG. 1) through a cable (e.g., the cable 140 ofFIG. 1).

According to one embodiment, the Rx signal may be amplified by the LNA(s) 221, combined by the power combiner 222 and input to the mixer 223.Image signals generated in the mixer 223 may be suppressed by the balun224, and the Rx signal may be transferred to the first terminal of theswitch 214.

A conventional RF circuit for transmitting and receiving signals in themmWave band does not have a feedback receiver (FBRX), thus having aproblem that the calibration (calibration) and power control of the Txsignal is difficult. Hereinafter, an RF circuit having an FBRX andtransmitting and receiving a signal in the mmWave band is proposed.

FIG. 5 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 5, an RF circuit 500 (e.g., the RF circuit 132 ofFIG. 1) may include a feedback receiver (FBRX). For example, the RFcircuit 500 may include a coupler 513 and transfer a coupling signalcoupled from a Tx signal through a Rx path. In other words, the couplingsignal and the Rx signal may share at least a part of the Rx path in theRF circuit 500. To this end, the RF circuit 500 may further include aswitch 523. The RF circuit 500 may include amplifiers 511 and 521, apower divider 512, the coupler 513, a power combiner 522, a mixer 514,the switch 523, a mixer 524, a balun 525, a diplexer 515 and a duplexer516.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 500 may have an FBRXstructure in the RF circuit 200 of FIG. 2. For example, the RF circuit500 may support the TDD scheme and operate as an FBRX using an Rx pathat a transmission timing. Some configurations of the RF circuit 500 maybe the same as or similar to some configurations of the RF circuit 200of FIG. 2. For example, the amplifiers 511 and 521, the power divider512, the power combiner 522, the mixer 514, the mixer 524, the balun525, the diplexer 515 and the duplexer 516 in the RF circuit 500 may berespectively the same as or similar to the amplifiers 211 and 221, thepower divider 212, the power combiner 222, the mixer 213, the mixer 223,the balun 224, the diplexer 215 and the duplexer 216 in FIG. 2.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 500 may include an Rx pathand a Tx path. The Rx path may include the low noise amplifier (s) 521,the power combiner 522, the switch 523, the mixer 524, and the balun525. The Tx path may include the mixer 514, the coupler 513, the powerdivider 512, and the power amplifier (s) 511.

According to an embodiment, a coupling path may be disposed between thecoupler 513 and the switch 523. The coupling path may be a path throughwhich a signal coupled by a coupler is transferred.

According to one embodiment, the coupler 513 may feed back at least apart of a Tx signal in the direction of an IF circuit (e.g., the IFcircuit 120 of FIG. 1). According to one embodiment, the coupler 513 mayfeed back at least a part of the Tx signal output from the mixer 514.The signal fed back by the coupler 513 may be referred to as a feedbacksignal or a coupling signal.

According to one embodiment, the Tx signal output from the coupler 513may be input to the power divider 512, and the coupling signal outputfrom the coupler 513 may be transferred to the Rx path.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 500 may include the switch523 to transfer the coupling signal through the Rx path. The switch 523may form a path to selectively transmit the coupling signal or the Rxsignal to the mixer 524.

According to one embodiment, the switch 523 may include a first terminalconnected to the coupling path for transferring a coupling signal, asecond terminal electrically connected to an Rx antenna, and a thirdterminal electrically connected to an Rx signal output terminal of theRF circuit 500. The switch 523 may be selectively connected to the firstterminal or the second terminal. The switch 523 may be, for example, anSPDT.

According to one embodiment, the switch 523 may be disposed between thepower combiner 522 and the mixer 524. According to one embodiment, thesecond terminal of the switch 523 may be electrically connected to thepower combiner 522, and the third terminal may be electrically connectedto the mixer 524. According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 500 mayselectively obtain one of a coupling signal and an Rx signal, and theselected signal may be output through the Rx path.

According to one embodiment, the mixer 514 may be disposed between thecoupler 513 and the diplexer 515. The Tx signal output from the diplexer515 may be input to the mixer 514.

According to one embodiment, the signal output from the switch 523 maybe input to the mixer 524, and the mixer 524 may output an IF signalusing LO+ and LO− signals and a signal output from the switch 523. Animage signal generated at this time may be suppressed by the balun 525.The IF signal which is output may be transferred to the outside of theRF circuit 500 through the balun 525. Here, the signal output from theswitch 523 may be a coupling signal or an Rx signal. The coupling signaland the Rx signal may be signals in an RF band.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 500 may include a Tx portand an Rx port separately. The Tx port may be a port through which theRF circuit 500 receives a Tx signal from the outside. The Tx port may beelectrically connected to the diplexer 515. The Rx port may be a portthrough which the RF circuit 500 transfers an Rx signal or a couplingsignal to the outside. The Rx port may be electrically connected to thebalun 525.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, when the coupler 513 is disposed before thepower divider 512, a closed-loop power calibration may be possible usinga small number of couplers. The closed-loop calibration may have theadvantage of reducing a calibration speed for electronic devices withmultiple modules. The FBRX may be implemented using only one coupler,which allows more space to be secured in the module. According to oneembodiment, the FBRX may be implemented with the structure of FIG. 5because a fixed voltage may be used due to an efficiency of a modulatorin a high frequency band (e.g., 28 GHz band), and an operatingcharacteristic of a power amplifier is not variant like average powertracking (APT) or envelope tracking (ET) in a band of less than 3 GHz.

FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 6, an RF circuit 501 (e.g., the RF circuit 132 ofFIG. 1) may include a triplexer 517 at an input terminal. Someconfigurations of the RF circuit 501 may be the same as or similar tothe RF circuit 500. For example, the amplifier (s) 511 and 521, thepower divider 512, the power combiner 522, the coupler 513, the mixer514, the mixer 524, the switch 523, and the balun 525 may berespectively the same as or similar to the configurations of FIG. 5.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 501 may obtain a VCO signal,a control signal, and a Tx signal through a Tx port using the triplexer517. The triplexer 517 may be electrically connected to the mixer 514.

The structures of the RF circuits of FIGS. 5 and 6 may be variouslymodified. For example, the RF circuits of FIGS. 5 and 6 may be modifiedto include one port connected to the outside as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 5 according to an embodiment.

Although the operation of the RF circuit 501 of FIG. 6 is illustrated inFIG. 7, the following embodiments may be applied to the RF circuit 500of FIG. 5.

According to one embodiment, while the RF circuit 501 performstransmission operation, the switch 523 may be connected in the directionof the coupler 513, and the RF circuit 501 may operate like the FBRX.The switch 523 may be connected to a coupling path, and may transfer thecoupling signal to an Rx signal output terminal. The Tx signal may betransferred to an antenna module through a Tx path, and at least a partof a Tx signal may be transferred to an Rx path through the coupler 513and the switch 523. The coupling signal transferred to the Rx path maybe output through the mixer 524 and the balun 525.

According to one embodiment, in operation in which the RF circuit 500performs Rx operation, the switch 523 may be connected to the Rx path.The switch 523 may be electrically connected to the power combiner 522,for example. The signal obtained through the antenna module may beoutput through the low noise amplifier 521, the power combiner 522, theswitch 523, the mixer 524, and the balun 525.

According to one embodiment, a signal output from the balun 525 may betransferred to an IF circuit (e.g., the IF circuit 120 of FIG. 1)through a cable (e.g., the cable 140 of FIG. 1).

FIG. 8 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 8, an RF circuit 800 may include a coupler 816 at anoutput terminal of an antenna module (e.g., the antenna module 134 ofFIG. 1) in a Tx path, and use an Rx path to transfer a signal coupledthrough the coupler 816. To this end, the RF circuit 800 may include acombiner 817 and a switch 823. According to one embodiment, the RFcircuit 800 may include amplifiers 811 and 821, a power divider 812, apower combiner 822, a mixer 813, a mixer 824, a balun 825, a duplexer814, a diplexer 815, the coupler 816, the combiner 817, and the switch823.

According to one embodiment, some configurations of the RF circuit 800may be the same as or similar to some configurations of the RF circuit500 of FIG. 5. For example, the amplifiers 811 and 821, the powerdivider 812, the power combiner 822, the switch 823, the mixer 813, themixer 824, the duplexer 814, the diplexer 815 and the balun 825 in theRF circuit 800 may be respectively the same as or similar to theamplifiers 511 and 521, the power divider 512, the power combiner 522,the switch 523, the mixer 514, the mixer 524, the diplexer 515, theduplexer 516, and the balun 525 in the RF circuit 500.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 800 may include an Rx pathand a Tx path. The Rx path may include the low noise amplifier (s) 821,the power combiner 822, the switch 823, the mixer 824, and the balun825. The Tx path may include a mixer 814, a coupler 813, the powerdivider 812, and the power amplifier (s) 811.

According to an embodiment, a coupling path may be disposed between thecoupler 816 and the switch 823. The coupling path may be a path throughwhich a signal coupled by a coupler is transferred. The coupling pathmay include the combiner 817 that combines signals output from thecoupler 816.

According to one embodiment, the coupler 816 may be disposed in front ofthe power amplifier (s) 811, and may transfer some of Tx signals outputfrom the power amplifier (s) 811 to the coupling path.

According to one embodiment, the coupler 816 may include a plurality ofcouplers. Each of the plurality of couplers may obtain a signal which isoutput from the power divider 812 and amplified for each of the poweramplifier (s) 811 as input. For example, one coupler may obtain a signaloutput from the power amplifier (s) 811-1 as an input and transfer thesignal to an antenna module and/or to a coupling path. Another couplermay obtain a signal output from the power amplifier (s) 811-2 as aninput and transfer the signal to the antenna module and/or to thecoupling path.

According to one embodiment, the combiner 817 may combine the couplingsignals coupled by the coupler 816. The combiner 817 may be disposedbetween the coupler 816 and the switch 823.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 800 may include the switch823, and the switch 823 may be disposed such that the coupling signalshares an Rx path with an Rx signal. The switch 823 may select thecoupling signal or the Rx signal.

According to one embodiment, the switch 823 may include a first terminalconnected to the coupling path for transferring a coupling signal, asecond terminal electrically connected to an Rx antenna, and a thirdterminal electrically connected to an Rx signal output terminal of theRF circuit 800. The first terminal may be electrically connected to anoutput terminal of the combiner 817. The switch 823 may be selectivelyconnected to the first terminal or the second terminal. The switch 823may be, for example, an SPDT.

According to one embodiment, the switch 823 may be disposed between thepower combiner 822 and the mixer 824. According to one embodiment, thesecond terminal of the switch 823 may be electrically connected to thepower combiner 822, and the third terminal may be electrically connectedto the mixer 824. According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 800 mayselectively obtain one of a coupling signal and an Rx signal, and theselected signal may be output through the Rx path.

According to one embodiment, the signal output from the switch 823 maybe input to the mixer 824, and the mixer 824 may output an IF signalusing LO+ and LO− signals and a signal output from the switch 823. Animage signal generated at this time may be suppressed by the balun 825.The IF signal which is output may be transferred to the outside of theRF circuit 800 through the balun 825. Here, the signal output from theswitch 823 may be a coupling signal or an Rx signal. The coupling signaland the Rx signal may be signals in an RF band, for example the mmWaveband.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 800 may include a Tx portand an Rx port which are separate from each other. The Tx port may be aport through which the RF circuit 800 receives a Tx signal from theoutside. The Tx port may be electrically connected to the diplexer 815.The Rx port may be a port through which the RF circuit 800 transfers anRx signal or a coupling signal to the outside. The Rx port may beelectrically connected to the balun 825.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, the RF circuit 800 may not have a path and aport for detecting the coupling signal because the coupling signalshares the Rx port with the Rx signal.

FIG. 9 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 9, an RF circuit 801 (e.g., the RF circuit 132 ofFIG. 1) may include a triplexer 818 at an input terminal of a Tx signal.Some configurations of the RF circuit 801 may be the same as or similarto the RF circuit 800. For example, the amplifier (s) 811 and 821, thepower divider 812, the power combiner 822, the mixer 813, the mixer 824,the balun 825, the coupler 816, and the combiner 817, and the switch 823may be respectively the same as or similar to the configurations of FIG.8.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 801 may obtain a VCO signal,a control signal, and a Tx signal through a Tx port using the triplexer817. The triplexer 817 may be electrically connected to the mixer 813.

The structures of the RF circuits of FIGS. 8 and 9 may be variouslymodified. For example, the RF circuits of FIGS. 8 and 9 may be modifiedto include one port connected to the outside as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for describing an operation of the RF circuit ofFIG. 8 according to an embodiment.

Although the operation of the RF circuit 800 of FIG. 8 is illustrated inFIG. 10, the following embodiments may be applied to the RF circuit 801of FIG. 9.

According to one embodiment, while the RF circuit 800 performs Txoperation, the switch 823 may be connected in the direction of thecoupler 816 (or the combiner 817), and the RF circuit 800 may operatelike the FBRX. The switch 823 may be connected to a coupling path, andmay transfer the coupling signal to an output terminal of the Rx path.The Tx signal may be transferred to an antenna module (e.g., the antennamodule 134 of FIG. 1). For example, the Tx signal may be converted intoan RF signal at the mixer 813, power for antennas may be distributed atthe power divider 812, amplified at the amplifier (s) 811 andtransferred to the antenna through the coupler 816 or at least a part ofthe Tx signal may be transferred to the Rx path through the coupler 816and the switch 823. The coupling signal transferred to the Rx path maybe output through the mixer 824 and the balun 825.

According to one embodiment, in operation in which the RF circuit 800performs Rx operation, the switch 823 may be connected to the Rx path.The switch 823 may be electrically connected to the power combiner 822,for example. The Rx signal obtained through the antenna module may beoutput through the low noise amplifier 821, the power combiner 822, theswitch 823, the mixer 824, and the balun 825.

According to one embodiment, a signal output from the balun 825 may betransferred to an IF circuit (e.g., the IF circuit 120 of FIG. 1)through a cable (e.g., the cable 140 of FIG. 1).

FIG. 11 is a structural diagram of an RF circuit according to anembodiment.

Referring to FIG. 11, an RF circuit 1100 may include amplifiers 1111 and1121, a power divider 1112, a power combiner 1122, a mixer 1113, a mixer1123, a switch 1124, and a triplexer 1114. The amplifiers 1111 and 1121,the power divider 1112, the power combiner 1122, and the mixer 1113 inthe RF circuit 1100 may be respectively the same as or similar to theamplifiers 211 and 221, the power divider 212, the power combiner 222,and the mixer 213 in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Referring to FIG. 11, the mixer 1123 may convert a signal received in anRF or mmWave band into an IF signal. The mixer 1123 may convert the Rxsignal using an LO signal of a single phase. In this case, the RFcircuit 1100 may include a filter to suppress an image signal.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 1100 may support the TDDscheme. To this end, the RF circuit 1100 may include the switch 1124 forselecting an Rx signal or a Tx signal for each time interval. The switch1124 may transfer the Tx signal output from the triplexer 1114 to themixer 1113 or the Rx signal output from the mixer 1123 to the triplexer1114.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 1100 may include one portcapable of inputting and outputting both the Tx signal and the Rxsignal. The one port may be electrically connected to the triplexer1114.

As described above, in a high frequency band, it may be effective tosuppress an image signal using the balun and +/−LO signals as in FIGS.2, 5 and 8, compared with using the filter as shown in FIG. 11.

According to one embodiment, an electronic device may include an antennafor transmitting and receiving a signal in an RF frequency band, and anRF circuit configured to process the signal in the RF frequency band.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit may include an Rx path fortransferring a first signal received through the antenna, a Tx path fortransferring a second signal output from an amplifier to the antenna,and a coupler for transferring at least a part of the second signalobtained in the Tx path to the Rx path.

According to one embodiment, the Rx path may include a low noiseamplifier, and a down converter that converts the first signal into anintermediate frequency (IF) signal based on a local oscillator (LO)signal and the first signal.

According to one embodiment, the Rx path may include a selection circuitthat selects at least a part of the first signal or the second signal.According to one embodiment, the selection circuit may be disposedbetween the low noise amplifier and the down converter, and the lownoise amplifier may be electrically connected to the antenna.

According to one embodiment, the selection circuit may include a switchincluding a first terminal electrically connected to the low noiseamplifier, a second terminal electrically connected to the coupler, anda third terminal connected to the down converter, and the switch may beconfigured to selectively connect the first terminal or the secondterminal to the third terminal.

According to one embodiment, the LO signal may include LO+ and LO−signals. According to one embodiment, the Rx path may include a balunelectrically connected to an output terminal of the down converter.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include a power dividerthat distributes power to the antenna, and the coupler may beelectrically connected to an input terminal of the power divider.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include an up converterthat converts the second signal into a signal in an RF frequency band,and the coupler may be electrically connected to an output terminal ofthe up converter.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include a power amplifierthat amplifies power of the second signal, and the coupler may beelectrically connected to an output terminal of the power amplifier.

According to one embodiment, a combiner that combines outputs of thecoupler may be included between the coupler and the switch.

According to one embodiment, the antenna may include an array antenna.The antenna may transmit and receive a signal in the mmWave frequencyband.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit may support a time divisionduplex (TDD).

According to one embodiment, an RF circuit may include an Rx pathincluding a low noise amplifier and a down converter that converts an Rxsignal into an IF signal based on the Rx signal and a first localoscillator (LO) signal, a Tx path including an up converter thatconverts a Tx signal into a signal in an mmWave band based on the Txsignal and a second local oscillator (LO), and a coupling path fortransferring at least a part of the Tx signal to the Rx path.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit may include a selectioncircuit that selectively transfers a coupled signal or the Rx signalthrough the Rx path. According to one embodiment, the selection circuitmay be disposed between the low noise amplifier and the down converter.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include a power amplifierand a coupler, and the coupler may be disposed between the poweramplifier and the up converter.

FIG. 12 is a detailed structural diagram of an RF module according to anembodiment.

According to one embodiment, an RF module (e.g., the RF module 130 ofFIG. 1) may include an RF circuit 1200 (e.g., the RF circuit 132 of FIG.1), a front end module (FEM) 1203 and an antenna 1201.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 1200 may include an Rx pathand a Tx path. According to one embodiment, an Rx path may include a lownoise amplifier (LNA) 1212, a phase shifter (PS) 1214, and a rangedoppler algorithm 1216. According to one embodiment, a Tx path mayinclude a PA 1232, a photo parametric amplifier (PPA), a PS 1236, and apositive metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) input self-biased differentialamplifier 1238.

According to one embodiment, each Rx path may be connected to a powercombiner 1250 and the Tx path may be coupled to a power divider 1252.The power combiner 1250 and/or the power divider 1252 may be of, forexample, 2 ways, 4 ways, 8 ways, and 16 ways.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 1200 may include a pluralityof Rx paths and Tx paths. Each of the Rx paths and Tx paths may becoupled to the power combiner 1250 and the power divider 1252. Accordingto one embodiment, the Tx path may be electrically connected to acoupler 1256, and the RF signal output from the coupler 1256 may betransferred to the Tx path through the power divider 1252. At least apart of an RF signal output from the coupler 1256 may be coupled andtransferred to a signal Rx path. The RF signal may be a signal which isconverted by a mixer 1258.

According to one embodiment, a switch 1254 may be connected to the powercombiner 1250. According to one embodiment, the switch 1254 may beconnected in the direction of the coupler 1256 or the power combiner1250.

A signal output from the switch 1254 may be converted into an IF signalby a mixer 1260. In this case, an LO+ signal and an LO− signal may beinput to the mixer 1260. A signal output from the mixer 1260 may beoutput through an Rx port through a balun 1262.

According to one embodiment, the Tx path may include a diplexer 1264 anda duplexer 1266. The duplexer 1266 may output a VCO signal and a controlsignal. According to one embodiment, the diplexer 1264 may obtain a Txsignal through a Tx port and separate the Tx signal from the VCO signaland the control signal.

According to one embodiment, the RF circuit 1200 may further include abandgap voltage reference (BGR) 1268, a temperature sensor 1270, a powermanagement integrated circuit (PMIC)/low dropout regulator (LDO) 1272,and a serial peripheral interface (SPI)/look up library 1274. Accordingto one embodiment, the duplexer 1266 may be electrically connected tothe SPI/lookup library 1274.

According to one embodiment, the FEM (s) 1203 may be at least one modulelocated in front of the RF circuit 1200. The FEM (s) 1203 may transfersignals output from the RF circuit 1200 to corresponding antennas 1201and 1202. According to one embodiment, the FEM (s) 1203 may include aswitch or the like.

According to one embodiment, the antennas 1201 and 1202 may transmit andreceive a signal in an mmWave band to and from an external device. Theantennas 1201 and 1202 may be array antennas. The antennas 1201 and 1202may be used as Tx antennas and/or Rx antennas. The FEM (s) 1203 mayinclude a switch for changing the transmission/reception usage.According to one embodiment, the antennas 1201 and 1202 may configure anantenna module (e.g., the antenna module 134 of FIG. 1) or may beimplemented as an antenna module.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an electronic device in a networkenvironment according to various embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 13, an electronic device 1301 may communicate with anelectronic device 1302 through a first network 1398 (e.g., a short-rangewireless communication) or may communicate with an electronic device1304 or a server 1308 through a second network 1399 (e.g., along-distance wireless communication) in a network environment 1300.According to an embodiment, the electronic device 1301 may communicatewith the electronic device 1304 through the server 1308. According to anembodiment, the electronic device 1301 may include a processor 1320, amemory 1330, an input device 1350, a sound output device 1355, a displaydevice 1360, an audio module 1370, a sensor module 1376, an interface1377, a haptic module 1379, a camera module 1380, a power managementmodule 1388, a battery 1389, a communication module 1390, a subscriberidentification module 1396, and an antenna module 1397. According tosome embodiments, at least one (e.g., the display device 1360 or thecamera module 1380) among components of the electronic device 1301 maybe omitted or other components may be added to the electronic device1301. According to some embodiments, some components may be integratedand implemented as in the case of the sensor module 1376 (e.g., afingerprint sensor, an iris sensor, or an illuminance sensor) embeddedin the display device 1360 (e.g., a display).

The processor 1320 may operate, for example, software (e.g., a program1340) to control at least one of other components (e.g., a hardware orsoftware component) of the electronic device 1301 connected to theprocessor 1320 and may process and compute a variety of data. Theprocessor 1320 may load a command set or data, which is received fromother components (e.g., the sensor module 1376 or the communicationmodule 1390), into a volatile memory 1332, may process the loadedcommand or data, and may store result data into a nonvolatile memory1334. According to an embodiment, the processor 1320 may include a mainprocessor 1321 (e.g., a central processing unit or an applicationprocessor) and an auxiliary processor 1323 (e.g., a graphic processingdevice, an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or acommunication processor), which operates independently from the mainprocessor 1321, additionally or alternatively uses less power than themain processor 1321, or is specified to a designated function. In thiscase, the auxiliary processor 1323 may operate separately from the mainprocessor 1321 or embedded.

In this case, the auxiliary processor 1323 may control, for example, atleast some of functions or states associated with at least one component(e.g., the display device 1360, the sensor module 1376, or thecommunication module 1390) among the components of the electronic device1301 instead of the main processor 1321 while the main processor 1321 isin an inactive (e.g., sleep) state or together with the main processor1321 while the main processor 1321 is in an active (e.g., an applicationexecution) state. According to an embodiment, the auxiliary processor1323 (e.g., the image signal processor or the communication processor)may be implemented as a part of another component (e.g., the cameramodule 1380 or the communication module 1390) that is functionallyrelated to the auxiliary processor 1323. The memory 1330 may store avariety of data used by at least one component (e.g., the processor 1320or the sensor module 1376) of the electronic device 1301, for example,software (e.g., the program 1340) and input data or output data withrespect to commands associated with the software. The memory 1330 mayinclude the volatile memory 1332 or the nonvolatile memory 1334.

The program 1340 may be stored in the memory 1330 as software and mayinclude, for example, an operating system 1342, a middleware 1344, or anapplication 1346.

The input device 1350 may be a device for receiving a command or data,which is used for a component (e.g., the processor 1320) of theelectronic device 1301, from an outside (e.g., a user) of the electronicdevice 1301 and may include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, or akeyboard.

The sound output device 1355 may be a device for outputting a soundsignal to the outside of the electronic device 1301 and may include, forexample, a speaker used for general purposes, such as multimedia play orrecordings play, and a receiver used only for receiving calls. Accordingto an embodiment, the receiver and the speaker may be either integrallyor separately implemented.

The display device 1360 may be a device for visually presentinginformation to the user of the electronic device 1301 and may include,for example, a display, a hologram device, or a projector and a controlcircuit for controlling a corresponding device. According to anembodiment, the display device 1360 may include a touch circuitry or apressure sensor for measuring an intensity of pressure on the touch.

The audio module 1370 may convert a sound and an electrical signal indual directions. According to an embodiment, the audio module 1370 mayobtain the sound through the input device 1350 or may output the soundthrough an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 1302(e.g., a speaker or a headphone)) wired or wirelessly connected to thesound output device 1355 or the electronic device 1301.

The sensor module 1376 may generate an electrical signal or a data valuecorresponding to an operating state (e.g., power or temperature) insideor an environmental state outside the electronic device 1301. The sensormodule 1376 may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, abarometric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, agrip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an infrared sensor, abiometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or anilluminance sensor.

The interface 1377 may support a designated protocol wired or wirelesslyconnected to the external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device1302). According to an embodiment, the interface 1377 may include, forexample, an HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface), a USB(universal serial bus) interface, an SD card interface, or an audiointerface.

A connecting terminal 1378 may include a connector that physicallyconnects the electronic device 1301 to the external electronic device(e.g., the electronic device 1302), for example, an HDMI connector, aUSB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., aheadphone connector).

The haptic module 1379 may convert an electrical signal to a mechanicalstimulation (e.g., vibration or movement) or an electrical stimulationperceived by the user through tactile or kinesthetic sensations. Thehaptic module 1379 may include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectricelement, or an electric stimulator.

The camera module 1380 may shoot a still image or a video image.According to an embodiment, the camera module 1380 may include, forexample, at least one lens, an image sensor, an image signal processor,or a flash.

The power management module 1388 may be a module for managing powersupplied to the electronic device 1301 and may serve as at least a partof a power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

The battery 1389 may be a device for supplying power to at least onecomponent of the electronic device 1301 and may include, for example, anon-rechargeable (primary) battery, a rechargeable (secondary) battery,or a fuel cell.

The communication module 1390 may establish a wired or wirelesscommunication channel between the electronic device 1301 and theexternal electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 1302, theelectronic device 1304, or the server 1308) and support communicationexecution through the established communication channel. Thecommunication module 1390 may include at least one communicationprocessor operating independently from the processor 1320 (e.g., theapplication processor) and supporting the wired communication or thewireless communication. According to an embodiment, the communicationmodule 1390 may include a wireless communication module 1392 (e.g., acellular communication module, a short-range wireless communicationmodule, or a GNSS (global navigation satellite system) communicationmodule) or a wired communication module 1394 (e.g., an LAN (local areanetwork) communication module or a power line communication module) andmay communicate with the external electronic device using acorresponding communication module among them through the first network1398 (e.g., the short-range communication network such as a Bluetooth, aWiFi direct, or an IrDA (infrared data association)) or the secondnetwork 1399 (e.g., the long-distance wireless communication networksuch as a cellular network, an internet, or a computer network (e.g.,LAN or WAN)). The above-mentioned various communication modules 1390 maybe implemented into one chip or into separate chips, respectively.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication module 1392 mayidentify and authenticate the electronic device 1301 using userinformation stored in the subscriber identification module 1396 in thecommunication network.

The antenna module 1397 may include one or more antennas to transmit orreceive the signal or power to or from an external source. According toan embodiment, the communication module 1390 (e.g., the wirelesscommunication module 1392) may transmit or receive the signal to or fromthe external electronic device through the antenna suitable for thecommunication method.

Some components among the components may be connected to each otherthrough a communication method (e.g., a bus, a GPIO (general purposeinput/output), an SPI (serial peripheral interface), or an MIPI (mobileindustry processor interface)) used between peripheral devices toexchange signals (e.g., a command or data) with each other.

According to an embodiment, the command or data may be transmitted orreceived between the electronic device 1301 and the external electronicdevice 1304 through the server 1308 connected to the second network1399. Each of the electronic devices 1302 and 1304 may be the same ordifferent types as or from the electronic device 1301. According to anembodiment, all or some of the operations performed by the electronicdevice 1301 may be performed by another electronic device or a pluralityof external electronic devices. When the electronic device 1301 performssome functions or services automatically or by request, the electronicdevice 1301 may request the external electronic device to perform atleast some of the functions related to the functions or services, inaddition to or instead of performing the functions or services byitself. The external electronic device receiving the request may carryout the requested function or the additional function and transmit theresult to the electronic device 1301. The electronic device 1301 mayprovide the requested functions or services based on the received resultas is or after additionally processing the received result. To this end,for example, a cloud computing, distributed computing, or client-servercomputing technology may be used.

The electronic device according to various embodiments disclosed in thepresent disclosure may be various types of devices. The electronicdevice may include, for example, at least one of a portablecommunication device (e.g., a smartphone), a computer device, a portablemultimedia device, a mobile medical appliance, a camera, a wearabledevice, or a home appliance. The electronic device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure should not be limited to theabove-mentioned devices.

It should be understood that various embodiments of the presentdisclosure and terms used in the embodiments do not intend to limittechnologies disclosed in the present disclosure to the particular formsdisclosed herein; rather, the present disclosure should be construed tocover various modifications, equivalents, and/or alternatives ofembodiments of the present disclosure. With regard to description ofdrawings, similar components may be assigned with similar referencenumerals. As used herein, singular forms may include plural forms aswell unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In the presentdisclosure disclosed herein, the expressions “A or B”, “at least one ofA or/and B”, “A, B, or C” or “one or more of A, B, or/and C”, and thelike used herein may include any and all combinations of one or more ofthe associated listed items. The expressions “a first”, “a second”, “thefirst”, or “the second”, used in herein, may refer to various componentsregardless of the order and/or the importance, but do not limit thecorresponding components. The above expressions are used merely for thepurpose of distinguishing a component from the other components. Itshould be understood that when a component (e.g., a first component) isreferred to as being (operatively or communicatively) “connected,” or“coupled,” to another component (e.g., a second component), it may bedirectly connected or coupled directly to the other component or anyother component (e.g., a third component) may be interposed betweenthem.

The term “module” used herein may represent, for example, a unitincluding one or more combinations of hardware, software and firmware.The term “module” may be interchangeably used with the terms “logic”,“logical block”, “part” and “circuit”. The “module” may be a minimumunit of an integrated part or may be a part thereof. The “module” may bea minimum unit for performing one or more functions or a part thereof.For example, the “module” may include an application-specific integratedcircuit (ASIC).

Various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented bysoftware (e.g., the program 1340) including an instruction stored in amachine-readable storage media (e.g., an internal memory 1336 or anexternal memory 1338) readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). Themachine may be a device that calls the instruction from themachine-readable storage media and operates depending on the calledinstruction and may include the electronic device (e.g., the electronicdevice 1301). When the instruction is executed by the processor (e.g.,the processor 1320), the processor may perform a function correspondingto the instruction directly or using other components under the controlof the processor. The instruction may include a code generated orexecuted by a compiler or an interpreter. The machine-readable storagemedia may be provided in the form of non-transitory storage media. Here,the term “non-transitory”, as used herein, is a limitation of the mediumitself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on datastorage persistency.

According to an embodiment, the method according to various embodimentsdisclosed in the present disclosure may be provided as a part of acomputer program product. The computer program product may be tradedbetween a seller and a buyer as a product. The computer program productmay be distributed in the form of machine-readable storage medium (e.g.,a compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM)) or may be distributed onlythrough an application store (e.g., a Play Store™). In the case ofonline distribution, at least a portion of the computer program productmay be temporarily stored or generated in a storage medium such as amemory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or arelay server.

Each component (e.g., the module or the program) according to variousembodiments may include at least one of the above components, and aportion of the above sub-components may be omitted, or additional othersub-components may be further included. Alternatively or additionally,some components (e.g., the module or the program) may be integrated inone component and may perform the same or similar functions performed byeach corresponding components prior to the integration. Operationsperformed by a module, a programming, or other components according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure may be executedsequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, or in a heuristic method. Also,at least some operations may be executed in different sequences,omitted, or other operations may be added.

While the present disclosure has been shown and described with referenceto various embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An electronic device comprising: aplurality of antennas configured to transmit and receive a signal in aradio frequency (RF) frequency band; and an RF circuit configured toprocess the signal in the RF frequency band, wherein the RF circuitincludes an Rx path configured to transfer a first signal receivedthrough the plurality of antennas; a Tx path configured to transfer asecond signal output from an amplifier to the plurality of antennas; anda coupler configured to transfer at least a part of the second signalobtained in the Tx path to the Rx path, wherein the Tx path includes apower divider configured to distribute power to the plurality ofantennas at a constant ratio, and wherein the coupler is electricallyconnected to an input terminal of the power divider to be disposedbefore the power divider.
 2. The electronic device of claim 1, furthercomprising: a low noise amplifier; and a down converter configured toconvert the first signal into an intermediate frequency (IF) signalbased on a local oscillator (LO) signal and the first signal.
 3. Theelectronic device of claim 2, wherein the Rx path includes a selectioncircuit configured to selects at least a part of the first signal or thesecond signal.
 4. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein theselection circuit is disposed between the low noise amplifier and thedown converter, and wherein the low noise amplifier is electricallyconnected to the antenna.
 5. The electronic device of claim 4, whereinthe selection circuit includes a switch including a first terminalelectrically connected to the low noise amplifier, a second terminalelectrically connected to the coupler, and a third terminal connected tothe down converter, and wherein the switch is configured to selectivelyconnect the first terminal and the second terminal to the thirdterminal.
 6. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein the LO signalincludes LO+ and LO− signals.
 7. The electronic device of claim 6,wherein the Rx path includes a balun electrically connected to an outputterminal of the down converter.
 8. The electronic device of claim 1,wherein the Tx path includes an up converter configured to convert thesecond signal into a signal in the RF frequency band, and wherein thecoupler is electrically connected to an output terminal of the upconverter.
 9. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the Tx pathincludes a power amplifier configured to amplify power of the secondsignal, and wherein the coupler is electrically connected to an outputterminal of the power amplifier.
 10. The electronic device of claim 9,further comprising: a combiner configured to combine outputs of thecoupler between the coupler and the switch.
 11. A radio frequency (RF)circuit, comprising: an Rx path including a low noise amplifier and adown converter configured to convert an Rx signal into an IF signalbased on the Rx signal and a first local oscillator (LO) signal, a Txpath including an up converter configured to convert a Tx signal into asignal in an mmWave band based on a second local oscillator and the Txsignal; and a coupling path configured to transfer at least a part ofthe Tx signal to the Rx path, wherein the Rx path includes a mixerconfigured to generate the IF signal by combining the first LO signaland the Rx signal, and wherein the mixer receives LO+ signal and LO−signal to suppress an image signal, the image signal generated by the Rxsignal and a 2^(nd) harmonic of the first LO signal.
 12. The RF circuitof claim 11, further comprising: a selection circuit configured toselectively transfer a coupled signal or the Rx signal through the Rxpath.
 13. The RF circuit of claim 12, wherein the selection circuit isdisposed between the low noise amplifier and the down converter.
 14. TheRF circuit of claim 11, wherein the Tx path includes a power amplifierand a coupler, and wherein the coupler is disposed between the poweramplifier and the up converter.